COLUMN: LDS should know religion
It’s been heard around campus, including in The Utah Statesman’s editorial page, that many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are not opposing gay marriage, based on their belief in God’s plan of agency for his children. “I know homosexuality is wrong,” they say, “but God has given everyone their agency and I don’t have the right to subvert God.”
It’s a noble gesture, with genuine good intentions. But my own personal understanding of doctrine leads me to a different conclusion.
The church, not surprisingly, has made no comment on whether it supports specific political means to either change or maintain the government’s definition of marriage. On issues like this, the church generally reminds members of doctrine and allows them to draw their own conclusions.
When abortion was the hot topic of debate just a short while ago, many Latter-day Saints drew a similar conclusion that they had no right to criminalize abortion. The church’s stance was clear – abortion is only acceptable in cases of rape, incest or serious health threats to the mother, and then only under the guidance of church leaders. Still, many members understandably concluded that they could not expect the world to hold itself to the same standards they did. In America, freedom of choice holds perhaps the highest priority of all freedoms.
But Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles warned members against falling for “seductive pro-choice slogans,” pointing out the LDS teaching that in this world, agency has already been secured. The test, Oaks said, is to use that power as a method for choosing good – freedom of choice is not a goal in and of itself.
“In today’s world we are not true to our teachings if we are merely pro-choice,” Oaks said. “We must stand up for the right choice. Those who persist in refusing to think beyond slogans and sound bites like pro-choice wander from the goals they pretend to espouse and wind up giving their support to results they might not support if those results were presented without disguise.”
The similarities between the pro-abortion and pro-gay marriage “choice” slogans are striking. Latter-day Saints are taught unequivocally that God ordained marriage to be between a man and a woman in “The Family” – a proclamation, not to Latter-day Saints, but to the world. The document states that “children are entitled … to be reared by a father and a mother.”
The family proclamation ends with a call to all citizens and government officials to “promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as a fundamental unit of society.”
Oaks said, “If we say we are anti-abortion in our personal life but pro-choice in public policy, we are saying that we will not use our influence to establish public policies that encourage righteous choices on matters God’s servants have established as serious sin.”
Latter-day Saints can draw their own conclusions.
A warning for those who choose to enter the gay marriage debate and identify themselves as Latter-day Saints: Please be careful to 1) Make sure your arguments are wholly backed up by doctrine, or 2) Clearly distinguish between church teachings and your personal opinion or interpretation of doctrine.
And finally, be respectful. Respect does not mean condoning immoral behavior, but neither does it mean shouting self-righteously at those who disagree with you during a rally.
Heidi Burton is The Utah Statesman’s news editor and a senior majoring in print journalism. Comments may be sent to heidithue@cc.usu.edu.